Seattle Mariners scouting Marlon Byrd, four other outfielders

The Seattle Mariners showed that they are serious about making the postseason this year when they signed second baseman Robinson Cano for 10 years and $240 million. They also brought in Corey Hart and closer Fernando Rodney. The Mariners are in third place in the A.L. West at 51-74, 8.0 games behind the Oakland Athletics heading into the All-Star break. Now, it appears that general manager Jack Zduriencik and field manager Lloyd McClendon want to solidify their chances of making the postseason by bringing in another bat before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.

CBS Sports’ baseball insider Jon Heyman reports that the Mariners want a right-handed hitting outfielder, particularly Marlon Byrd of the Philadelphia Phillies, to help add offense to the lineup. The Mariners are 11th in the American League in runs scored, so adding a bat makes perfect sense. Byrd is hitting .263/.316/.483 with 18 HR and 54 RBI for the Phillies, and Heyman says that Byrd is willing to waive his no-trade clause to go to a contender. The Mariners are in the division race, but Oakland is the favorite to win the division. Nevertheless, the Mariners could make a run, and they currently hold the second A.L. Wild Card spot by 2.0 games over Kansas City, so Byrd might accept that trade.

Should Byrd not pan out, though, the Mariners have four other outfielders in mind says Heyman: Minnesota’s Josh Willingham (.213, 8 HR, 25 RBI), Texas’s Alex Rios (.305, 4 HR, 42 RBI), Chicago Cubs’ Junior Lake (.218, 9 HR, 25 RBI), and Chicago White Sox’ Dayan Viciedo (.241, 11 HR, 34 RBI). Both Minnesota and Texas are expected to sell, and even though the Cubs are definitely buying for the future, they have an abundance of outfield prospects and could try to get a young pitching prospect or two in return for Lake. Heyman says that several teams have scouted Lake and the change of scenery would do him some good.

Remember that Seattle tried signing then-free agent Kendrys Morales once the June draft passed by, but they lost out to Minnesota. Cano has lobbied for some right-handed hitting since signing, and it looks like the Mariners will heed that request.

The Mariners’ pitching staff ranks second in the American League in ERA (3.15) behind only Oakland’s (3.12). If they can add some punch to the lineup, they will have a chance at making a run at Oakland — or catching the Los Angeles Angels for the A.L. Wild Card lead. Los Angeles holds the #1 spot by 6.5 games over Seattle.

PHOTO CREDIT: Joe Mabel, Wikimedia Commons